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A review by cryrider
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
3.5
edit 12/31/23: i’m going through my reviews and noticed that I never fully explained my lowered rating. i initially rated this a 4.5 then bumped it down to a 3.5. i always had the words to describe why but didn’t commit to typing it out, so now i am.
I agree with both of my earlier thoughts; it definitely was a captivating novel yet the writing was often uninspired, at least in the “present day” chapters. It’s certainly disturbing—anything that portrays sexual abuse and pedophilia will be—but i found myself thinking that those bits were the only parts where the writing was at its best. the flashbacks always had structure in its plot and it was consistently great.
when we flash forward to present day, we’re meant to get a picture of how this traumatic event has shaped her life, yet not much is shown. we mostly see our protagonist avoid a reporter who wants to expose the full story while she continues to deny that anything bad actually happened to her. and while that sounds really interesting, we don’t get any meaningful scenes of her being retrospective or having anyone close to her tell her straight up that she was abused. instead, we pretty much watch her do nothing of note. i know that this can mirror people’s real experiences, of course. not everyone will confront their trauma so easily but it’s obvious that this book is pro therapy so i think it would’ve been better if the present day chapters took place mostly within the therapy sessions. or maybe the flashbacks were fewer and far between so we could spend more time with our adult protagonist as she navigates through her life as a victim. i don’t know, i think that would’ve been more impactful for me. but it was still enjoyable.
edit: the more i think about it, the more the writing seems less and less impressive. still a page-turner, just not as great as i initially thought. new rating: 3.5
——
old review:
Actual rating: 4.5
God, this book. Such a disgusting yet incredibly captivating portrayal of sexual abuse and its lasting effects of it. A must read.
I agree with both of my earlier thoughts; it definitely was a captivating novel yet the writing was often uninspired, at least in the “present day” chapters. It’s certainly disturbing—anything that portrays sexual abuse and pedophilia will be—but i found myself thinking that those bits were the only parts where the writing was at its best. the flashbacks always had structure in its plot and it was consistently great.
when we flash forward to present day, we’re meant to get a picture of how this traumatic event has shaped her life, yet not much is shown. we mostly see our protagonist avoid a reporter who wants to expose the full story while she continues to deny that anything bad actually happened to her. and while that sounds really interesting, we don’t get any meaningful scenes of her being retrospective or having anyone close to her tell her straight up that she was abused. instead, we pretty much watch her do nothing of note. i know that this can mirror people’s real experiences, of course. not everyone will confront their trauma so easily but it’s obvious that this book is pro therapy so i think it would’ve been better if the present day chapters took place mostly within the therapy sessions. or maybe the flashbacks were fewer and far between so we could spend more time with our adult protagonist as she navigates through her life as a victim. i don’t know, i think that would’ve been more impactful for me. but it was still enjoyable.
edit: the more i think about it, the more the writing seems less and less impressive. still a page-turner, just not as great as i initially thought. new rating: 3.5
——
old review:
Actual rating: 4.5
God, this book. Such a disgusting yet incredibly captivating portrayal of sexual abuse and its lasting effects of it. A must read.